ISBN Compelling God: Theories of Prayer in Anglo-Saxon England book English 336 pages

While prayer is generally understood as "communion with God" modern forms of spirituality prefer "communion" that is non-petitionary and wordless. This preference has unduly influenced modern scholarship on historic methods of prayer particularly concerning Anglo-Saxon spirituality.In Compelling God, Stephanie Clark examines the relationship between prayer, gift giving, the self, and community in Anglo-Saxon England. Clark’s analysis of the works of Bede, Ælfric, and Alfred utilizes anthropologic and economic theories of exchange in order to reveal the ritualized, gift-giving relationship with God that Anglo-Saxon prayer espoused. Anglo-Saxon prayer therefore should be considered not merely within the usual context of contemplation, rumination, and meditation but also within the context of gift exchange, offering, and sacrifice. Compelling God allows us to see how practices of prayer were at the centre of social connections through which Anglo-Saxons conceptualized a sense of their own personal and communal identity.

Stephanie Clark is an assistant professor in the Department of English at the University of Oregon.

"Compelling God: Theories of Prayer in Anglo-Saxon England is a significant accomplishment. In this book Stephanie Clark has combined her extensive knowledge of, among other things, patristic theology, Anglo-Saxon source studies, prayer and gift studies, to craft a lucidlywritten, highly original cultural analysis of Anglo-Saxon prayer that will be recognized as a seminal work on the topic in Anglo-Saxon literature. It is indeed the first study of its kind, and should be of great interest to a wide range of readers, both students and scholars, in a number of related disciplines, from Anglo-Saxon literature, to religious studies, to the intellectual history of the early Middle Ages." David F. Johnson, Department of English, Florida State University"Compelling God will be discussed by literary critics, historians, and theologians for years. Arguing that prayer in Anglo-Saxon England is part of a larger cultural construct, the economy of gifts, Clark interprets major works by Bede, Alfred, and Ælfric. Clark shows, moreover, how their practice contrasts to that set out by patristic writers, particularly Origen, Tertullian, and Augustine."Frederick Biggs, Department of English, University of Connecticut